Chapter 12: The Master
Marinette told Tikki all she had learned from M. Bourgeois.
"That is great progress," said Tikki "What next?"
"I need to talk to Gabriel Agreste," said Marinette. "I'll get his side of the story."
"But what if he or his wife is Hawk Moth? That's very dangerous!"
"How else can I make progress?"
"I have an idea, but I need your permission to be away for a little while. Only an hour at most."
Marinette said, "You have my permission, of course. I didn't know you needed it."
Tikki returned in about half an hour.
"The Master wants to meet with you. Can you meet him at the park next door?"
"Who is this?" asked Marinette.
"He's an expert on the Miraculous. I consulted him and he wants to talk with you."
"You spoke to him? He knows you came from Ladybug? Should I meet him as Ladybug or myself?"
"As yourself. You can trust him."
Marinette went out with Tikki in her purse. Tikki guided her to a park bench where a man was sitting. He was old and small, and he might have been mistaken for a child with his hoodie up around his face.
"I know you," said Marinette. "You're the man I rescued when you crossed the street in front of a car at the start of the school year."
"You are mistaken," said the man. "We have not met before."
"Admit it. I know your voice." said Marinette. "That was some kind of test, right? To see if I would help you."
"You are very clever," said the man. "Yes, it was a test. You are a worthy Ladybug."
"Then you, or your organization, gave me the Miraculous."
"Yes, but that is a secret you must never tell anyone."
"Thank you for letting me borrow Tikki... Sir. I don't know your name."
"You may call me Master Fu."
"Master Fu, I suppose Tikki told you what I've been doing, investigating an old crime. It seems to be a lead to find Hawk Moth's identity."
"Tikki feared you would act rashly and confront Gabriel Agreste by yourself. That would be very dangerous. In a face to face confrontation with Hawk Moth you would lose, and your Miraculous would be taken."
"Are you sure he's Hawk Moth?"
"The Butterfly and Peacock Miraculous were lost together. If one was found, the other would almost certainly be, as well as a book with pictures that would reveal may secrets. Since M. Agreste told his fellow conspirators about a plan to make an obedient son, we must assume he is Hawk Moth."
"What does the Peacock Miraculous do?"
"It is for Duusu, the kwami of emotion. The holder can take take any emotion, their own or another's, and form a living creature, a sentimonster."
"And the sentimonster will obey them completely?"
"The holder charges a feather with magic energy; this is called an amok. The amok is then merged into an object, in the same way an akuma butterfly goes into an object belonging to an akuma victim. After this is done, the sentimonster will appear. It will obey the person holding the amokitized object."
"What if nobody holds it?"
"Then it will act according to the purpose for which it was created. But if a new person takes the object, the sentimonster will stop and wait for new orders."
"Can a sentimonster hold its own object?"
"Yes, and then it has complete free will."
"Can a sentimonster be a real human being?"
"If it was created that way, yes. Nobody could tell the difference. But that is a highly unusual case. The Butterfly and Peacock were often used together. Normally the sentimonster would be an animal companion or a steed for a hero."
"So Adrien..."
"I have never heard of the Peacock being used that way before, to create an child growing up over many years. It would strain the power of Duusu to be used that way, even if some outside magic was used to boost his power. It would damage the Miraculous."
"Maybe that's how Hawk Moth's plan went wrong? Is that why he wants the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous?"
"He might just be hungry for more power."
"Adrien's mother disappeared about a year ago. She could have gone into hiding to prepare to be Hawk Moth, right?"
"Or something happened to her. There is a lot we do not know."
"I want to end this quickly, to get Adrien out of the clutches of his father as soon as possible," said Marinette.
"We must act with caution," said Master Fu. "You are going to need time to adjust to working with a new partner."
"A new partner? What do you mean?"
"It was obviously a mistake to choose a sentimonster as the holder for the Black Cat. If his father is Hawk Moth and finds out his son is the holder, he could simply order him to hand over the Miraculous."
"No! It's terrible for him to lose that part of his life. He's a great partner for me."
"He has no resistance to orders from his father, our greatest enemy."
"Adrien did a prank on me with gum on his father's orders... I know he wouldn't do it otherwise. He doesn't have a mean bone in his body."
"So I must get the ring back from Adrien and choose another Chat Noir."
"Isn't there another way? What if we got the amokitized object and gave it to Adrien?"
"That may be very difficult to find."
"It's probably something Gabriel has on him at all times. What about his wedding ring?"
"It could be that, or anything else. The best thing would be to free Duusu and ask him. For that we would need the Peacock Miraculous. There is another reason to find it first."
"What is that?"
"The holder of the Peacock can release any sentimonster from existence with an act of will. They just vanish."
"What? He could kill Adrien just like that? His own son?"
"We don't know how real his feelings are for Adrien. He may see him just as a tool. What would you do as Ladybug if he threatened to destroy Adrien?"
"I... I would surrender."
"I see. I'm tempted to take your Miraculous back too, and deal with Hawk Moth with a team that has no emotions invested."
"No, please! Let me help you save Adrien."
"You have been such a good Ladybug, according to Tikki, that I will agree for now. But this is going to be very difficult. Hawk Moth need not have the Peacock on him. He probably has it locked away somewhere in his mansion, accessible but not in constant use like the Butterfly."
"How can we search his mansion without tipping him off?"
"There are ways. Let us make a plan."